UW Medicine Achieves HIMSS Stage 6; Neil & Burstain Tout Strong Governance as Key to Picking the Right Projects

UW Medicine is advancing digital transformation with a focus on AI-powered decision support, strong governance frameworks, and clinician collaboration. CIO Eric Neil and Chief Clinical Informatics Officer Dr. Todd Burstain recently discussed their journey to achieving HIMSS Stage 6, their measured approach to AI adoption, and the ongoing challenge of balancing innovation with standardization.

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Achieving HIMSS Stage 6: A Commitment to Patient Safety

Earning HIMSS Stage 6 recognition is no small feat, requiring organizations to meet rigorous benchmarks in digital maturity and EHR optimization. But for UW Medicine, the achievement was never about the award itself—it was about improving patient outcomes.

“The goal is not just to get an award,” Burstain emphasized. “The metrics were chosen because they reflect organizations that provide better care, and where providers and nurses are more satisfied using the EHR.”

A key component of their success was achieving high compliance rates in two critical areas:



* Barcode Medication Administration (BMA): Nurses scan both the patient and the medication to verify accuracy before administration. HIMSS requires 90% compliance for Stage 6 and 95% for Stage 7. UW Medicine currently maintains a 95-96% compliance rate across its hospitals.

* CPOE: Physicians directly enter orders into the EHR rather than relying on verbal instructions, reducing the risk of errors. UW Medicine boasts a 98-99% CPOE adoption rate.



Reducing Sepsis Mortality with Machine Learning

One of UW Medicine’s most impactful technology initiatives has been its sepsis prediction model, which has reduced sepsis-related mortality by 17%.

Sepsis remains the leading cause of in-hospital deaths in the U.S., but studies show early intervention can significantly lower mortality rates. UW Medicine customized Epic’s sepsis predictive model, training it on their own patient data over six months before deployment. The system continuously analyzes key clinical indicators—such as vital signs, white blood cell counts, and lactate levels—and triggers alerts when a patient is at high risk for sepsis.

“When a patient reaches a certain threshold, a ‘Code Sepsis’ is called,” Burstain explained. “Clinicians are immediately notified, and a standardized order set ensures the right fluids, antibiotics, and labs are administered without delay.”

The impact has been substantial. “A 17% drop in mortality may not sound like a lot, but when you consider how many patients develop sepsis, it means one more patient survives every five days who otherwise wouldn’t have,” Burstain said.

AI and Machine Learning: Cutting Through the Hype

The rise of AI in healthcare has created a mix of excitement and skepticism. While some organizations rush to implement AI solutions, Neil cautions against adopting AI without clear strategic value.

“We don’t do AI just to do AI,” Neil said. “We use it to advance our mission and strategic goals. Otherwise, you’re just throwing money away.”

UW Medicine has taken a measured approach to AI, focusing on projects that provide clear benefits. One promising initiative is ambient documentation technology, which captures provider-patient conversations in real-time and generates structured clinical notes.

“This is one of the most exciting things we’re doing,” Neil said. “If it improves provider efficiency, enhances documentation quality, and reduces pajama time—where doctors finish notes at home—it’s a win.”

Beyond documentation, AI is helping clinicians manage the growing complexity of patient data. Burstain noted that AI can organize and surface relevant information based on a provider’s specialty and clinical context.

“There’s so much data now that it’s easy to miss something,